[Python-Dev] Using more specific methods in Python unit tests

[Serhiy Storchaka]

Many Python tests were written a very long time before the unittest, 
using simple asserts. Then, when they have been ported to the unittest, 
asserts were replaced with the assert_ method and then with assertTrue. 
The unittest has a number of other methods to check for and report 
failure, from assertEqual, to more specific assertIs, assertIn, 
assertIsInstance, etc, added in 2.7. New methods provide better 
reporting in case of failure.

I wrote a large patch which modifies the tests to use more specific 
methods [1]. Because it is too large, it was divided into many smaller 
patches, and separate issues were opened for them. At the moment the 
major part of the original patch has already been committed. Many thanks 
to Ezio for making a review for the majority of the issues. Some changes 
have been made by other people in unrelated issues.

Although Raymond approved a patch for test_bigmem [2], his expressed the 
insistent recommendation not to do this. So I stop committing new 
reviewed patches. Terry recommended to discuss this in Python-Dev. What 
are your thoughts?

[1] http://bugs.python.org/issue16510
[2] http://bugs.python.org/issue20547